Kate Spurgeon

Writer/Actor/Producer

Kate began her career as an actor, earning her MFA from Penn State University. In an effort to create roles she would want to play, Kate began writing and quickly became a content creator. Kate's original pilot was a Finalist at the Austin Film Festival, she is an alumnus of the Warner Bros. Writers' Workshop and a WGA TV Writers' Access Project Honoree. Recent credits include Fuller House (Netflix) and The Last O.G. (TBS). Kate loves innovative character-driven comedy and rescue dogs.


Chosen Interview:

The Children of Tendu podcast


Creative Resources:

  • There are so many wonderful podcasts for professional advice and creative inspiration out there these days. Here’s a mix of my current favorites: Script Notes with John August & Craig Mazin, Criminal, You Must Remember This, Magic Lessons with Elizabeth Gilbert, The Moment with Brian Koppelman.
  • You Play The Girl: On Playboy Bunnies, Stepford Wives, Train Wrecks & Other Mixed Messages by Carina Chocano. This book of essays blew me away. I bought it for everyone I know! Carina deconstructs how we have all been culturally conditioned to tell stories about women. It’s incisive and revelatory. Another great read about the business, which I read years ago and inspired me to start creating my own content: The Kid Stays in the Picture by Robert Evans.
  • Reading hard copies of brilliant scripts I admire— when I need some inspiration and am craving the feeling of real pages, I go to the WGA library and read the bound copies they have of scripts and movies. You can find a lot of your favorite episodes in the flesh here — the tangibility of the words on the page makes it feel possible that the next thing you write could be just as great. 
  • I keep a journal that I write in first thing in the morning and last thing at night. I include questions, random thoughts, moments, character ideas, doodles or cut out and images that inspire me. Who knows what will lead to the next big idea or what connections you will be able to make from flipping through the pages at a later date. You’ll tend see trends and patterns in the kinds of themes, characters and stories you’re drawn to. 
  • Brene Brown — her original powerhouse Ted Talk on vulnerability that made her famous and her latest Netflix special about “daring greatly” called “Call to Courage” were game changers for me. I re-watch when I need a kick in the butt to put myself out there or try again (i.e. do another rewrite).
  • Meditation — Tara Brach has accessible meditations and constructive talks on how to stop damaging thought patterns and reconnect to love. I think in order to be at our best creatively we have to operate from love. Never fear or self-criticism. And that’s hard to maintain without practice. Also, Catching The Big Fish by David Lynch is a great resource for exploring the relationship between meditation and creativity.